Publication at Faculty of Science |
2018
Abstract
Bile acids are amphipathic molecules naturally occurring in humans, and other mammals. They are the end-products of cholesterol catabolism, and play several vital roles in the living organism.
These include cholesterol excretion, and facilitation of lipid absorption. The bile acids that are formed from cholesterol in the liver are termed primary.
In human, these are cholic acid, and chenodeoxycholic acid. Due to the lack of double bonds, and other analytically favourable functional groups, mass spectrometry is usually employed for their determination.
Herein a simple method of their chemical activation and subsequent electrochemical determination by differential pulse voltammetry is presented.